Printing apparatuses having a print data modification function and a size automatic adjustment function have been conventionally known.
Here, the print data modification function serves to automatically modify a part of given print data based on predetermined set conditions. Here, a sequential number function is given as a representative example for the above print data modification function. In the case of sequential number function, predetermined print data (for instance, “the ◯◯th”) is modified based on a predetermined set condition (for instance, 5 to 20). Accordingly, in the case of the above example, the above print data is modified as in the 5th, the 6th . . . the 20th.
Further, the size automatic adjustment function serves to automatically adjust the size of the printing range for the print data so as to enable printing thereof with respect to a printing area of a recording medium.
Such a printing apparatus having both the print data modification function and the size automatic adjustment function is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-138556. In this printing apparatus disclosed in the Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-138556, modification of the above print data and automatic adjustment of its size are carried out if the font of the characters constituting the print data is proportional and a sequential number function and a size automatic adjustment function are set.
As a result, according to the printing apparatus disclosed in the Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2005-138556, print data with a set proportional font is modified as needed using the sequential number function. Then, the above print data is printed onto the printing medium with a suitable size set through the size automatic adjustment function.
Here, the above-described print data modification function includes a function according to which date print data indicating the date and time (for instance, “2006 12  30 ”) is modified and then printed. According to this function, date print data is modified as needed as in “2006 12  31 ”, “2007 1 1 ”, for instance, and is then printed onto the printing medium.
As is understood from the above example, when the date print data is modified in accordance with the print data modification function, there may be cases that the number of characters constituting the above date print data changes.
In this case, simply applying the size automatic adjustment function with respect to the date print data may result in changes in the printing range (i.e. the size of the characters constituting the above date print data) of the above date print data based on the change in the number of characters.
For instance, the characters in “2006  12  31 ” and “2007  1 1 ” which are generated in accordance with the print data modification function can be set differently in character size. As a result, when the above date print data is printed onto the printing medium, the printed products appear to be different from each other. As a result, it is impossible to satisfy the demands of the users that desire a printed product with a good appearance.
From this point of view, the date print data is expressed in various fashions. Although the date print data may be expressed using numbers and Japanese kanji as was shown in the above example, it may also be expressed by using numbers and symbols as in “2006.12/31], or by using a foreign language such as English, etc. and numbers as in “2006.December.31”.
With respect to the case that the date print data is expressed using a foreign language (for instance, English), upon a close consideration of the expression of “month” alone, it is understood that there are months that are expressed in three characters as in “May”, but there are also months that are expressed in nine characters as in “September”. Accordingly, when the print data modification function is used with respect to date print data including the English term for the respective “month”, the number of characters may greatly differ. Thus, the character size which is set for the above date print data is set in accordance with the size automatic adjustment function to a size which differs greatly depending on the respective date print data. As a result, a sequence of date print data based on the print data modification function is provided as a printed product whose appearance differs greatly depending on the respective date print data. In other words, if the print data modification function and the size automatic adjustment function are applied with respect to the above-described date print data, it is impossible to obtain a printed product having good appearance, thereby making the above described problem even worse.